Case Detail

Make the Road New York et al v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security et al

District

Eastern District of New York

City

Brooklyn

Case Number

1:2018cv02445

Date Filed

2018-04-25

Date Closed

Open

Judge

Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis

Plaintiff

Make the Road New York

Plaintiff

Make the Road Connecticut

Case Description

Make the Road New York and Make the Road Connecticut, community organizations working with immigrants, submitted FOIA requests to the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice for records concerning the Trump administration's decision to terminate DACA. The two organizations also requested expedited processing and a fee waiver. The agencies acknowledged receipt of the requests. DOJ's Office of Legal Counsel denied the request for expedited processing. The organizations filed an administrative appeal of that decision, but the agency upheld its original decision to deny expedited processing. The organizations also agreed with OLC to narrow their request to cover only records pertaining to legal advice. After hearing nothing further from the agencies, Make the Road New York and Make the Road Connecticut filed suit.Complaint issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Expedited processing, Litigation - Attorney's fees

Summons Issued as to All Defendants, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Bowens, Priscilla) (Entered: 04/26/2018)

2018-04-26

3

In accordance with Rule 73 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Local Rule 73.1, the parties are notified that if all parties consent a United States magistrate judge of this court is available to conduct all proceedings in this civil action including a (jury or nonjury) trial and to order the entry of a final judgment. Attached to the Notice is a blank copy of the consent form that should be filled out, signed and filed electronically only if all parties wish to consent. The form may also be accessed at the following link: http://www.uscourts.gov/uscourts/FormsAndFees/Forms/AO085.pdf . You may withhold your consent without adverse substantive consequences . Do NOT return or file the consent unless all parties have signed the consent. (Bowens, Priscilla) (Entered: 04/26/2018)

2018-04-26

4

This attorney case opening filing has been checked for quality control. See the attachment for corrections that were made, if any. (Bowens, Priscilla) (Entered: 04/26/2018)

ORDER granting 14 Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice -- Attorney Justin B. Cox, Esq. is permitted to argue or try this case in whole or in part as counsel or advocate. By May 29, 2018, Mr. Cox shall register for ECF. Registration is available online at the EDNY's homepage. Once registered, Mr. Cox shall file a notice of appearance and ensure that he receives electronic notification of activity in this case. Mr. Cox shall also ensure that the $150 admission fee be submitted to the Clerk's Office. Ordered by Magistrate Judge James Orenstein on 5/22/2018. (Salvador, Anjali) (Entered: 05/22/2018)

2018-05-22

15

NOTICE of Appearance by Justin B. Cox on behalf of All Plaintiffs (notification declined or already on case) (Cox, Justin) (Entered: 05/22/2018)

2018-05-30

16

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York. Office of Legal Counsel served on 4/30/2018, answer due 5/21/2018; Office of the Attorney General served on 4/30/2018, answer due 5/21/2018; Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security served on 5/2/2018, answer due 5/23/2018; Office of the Solicitor General served on 4/30/2018, answer due 5/21/2018; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services served on 5/3/2018, answer due 5/24/2018; U.S. Department of Homeland Security served on 5/2/2018, answer due 5/23/2018; U.S. Department of Justice served on 4/30/2018, answer due 5/21/2018. (Cox, Justin) (Entered: 05/30/2018)

2018-05-31

17

Letter MOTION for scheduling conference by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York (Cox, Justin) (Entered: 05/31/2018)

Proposed Summons. Re 21 Amended Complaint,,, by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 06/26/2018)

2018-06-27

23

Summons Issued re 21 Amended Complaint as to U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General. (Lee, Tiffeny) (Entered: 06/27/2018)

2018-07-05

24

Letter MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer re 21 Amended Complaint,,, by Office of Legal Counsel, Office of the Attorney General, Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security, Office of the Solicitor General, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Justice. (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 07/05/2018)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York. U.S. Department of Justice - Civil Division served on 6/27/2018, answer due 8/27/2018. (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 07/12/2018)

RESPONSE in Opposition re 29 Second MOTION for Hearing for a Status Conference filed by All Defendants. (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 10/10/2018)

2018-10-11

ORDER re: Plaintiffs' 29 Application for Status Conference: The Application is GRANTED. The parties are directed to confer and contact the court's Deputy at 718-613-2545 to schedule the status conference. At the status conference, the parties can address the areas of dispute identified in Plaintiffs' Application, including whether a global scheduling order is necessary. Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 10/11/2018. (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 10/11/2018)

2018-10-30

32

STATUS REPORT Second Joint Status Report by Make the Road New York (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 10/30/2018)

2018-11-02

Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis: Status Conference held on 11/1/2018. Counsel for all parties present. The parties reported on the progress of Defendants' document review and production and addressed the areas of dispute identified in Plaintiff's 29 September 26, 2018, letter. The court directed Plaintiffs to file a proposed global scheduling order by no later than November 5, 2018, and directed Defendant U.S. Department of Homeland Security to file a declaration regarding its resource constraints by no later than November 9, 2018. The parties also reported that Defendant Office of the Attorney General plans to update Plaintiffs regarding the progress of its document review and production by November 8, 2018; the parties shall advise the court once that update is made. (Court Reporter Georgette Betts) (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 11/02/2018)

2018-11-05

33

MOTION to Expedite FOIA Production and Request for Global Scheduling Order by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York. (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 11/05/2018)

2018-11-06

ORDER re: Plaintiffs' 33 Request for a Global Scheduling Order: Defendants are DIRECTED to file a response to Plaintiff's proposed schedule by no later than 5:00 P.M. on November 9, 2018. If Defendants do not consent to Plaintiffs' proposed schedule, Defendants' response should include an alternative proposed schedule. Defendants' response should also address whether Defendant U.S. Department of Homeland Security ("DHS") should be required (as Plaintiffs request) to prioritize review of the 35 documents that were submitted to Judge Alsup in Regents of the University of California v. DHS, No. 17-cv-5211 (N.D. Cal.). The court notes that, in addition to Defendants' response to Plaintiffs' proposed schedule, DHS should also submit a declaration regarding its resource constraints by no later than November 9, 2018, pursuant to the court's order at the November 1, 2018 status conference. Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 11/6/2018. (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 11/06/2018)

MEMORANDUM & ORDER, For the foregoing reasons, the court GRANTS IN PART Plaintiffs' Motion for a Global Scheduling Order (Dkt. 33 ). DHS and USCIS are DIRECTED to produce all outstanding records on a rolling monthly basis by no later than February 28, 2019. OIP is DIRECTED to complete its search for records potentially responsive to Plaintiffs' FOIA request, confer with Plaintiffs, and propose a production schedule to the court by no later than December 21, 2018; if Plaintiffs do not agree with OIP's proposed schedule, they shall respond by no later than January 4, 2019. When the court sets a deadline for OIP to complete production, the court will simultaneously set a deadline for the submission of dispositive motions. The court declines to order Defendants to produce Vaughn indices at this time; Plaintiffs may renew their request at a later date. So Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 11/16/2018. (Lee, Tiffeny) (Entered: 11/16/2018)

2018-12-21

36

NOTICE by Office of the Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice of Filing Proposed Procesing Schedule (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 12/21/2018)

2018-12-26

37

NOTICE by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York Plaintiffs Proposed Production Schedule for Defendant OIP (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 12/26/2018)

2019-01-11

38

MOTION to Stay by Office of Legal Counsel, Office of the Attorney General, Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security, Office of the Solicitor General, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice - Civil Division. (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 01/11/2019)

2019-01-14

ORDER: Defendants' 38 Motion to Stay is GRANTED. All FOIA processing deadlines as applied to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security ("DHS") and the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Information Policy ("OIP") are stayed until Congress has restored appropriations to DHS and the Department of Justice ("DOJ"). Defendants are DIRECTED to inform the court and all parties by no later than two days after the date on which funding is restored for DHS and DOJ. Afterward, the court will set a deadline for OIP to complete production ( see Dkts. 36 , 37 ) and decide whether, and by how much time, to extend the parties' other deadlines. Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 1/14/2019. (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 01/14/2019)

2019-01-30

39

NOTICE by Office of Legal Counsel, Office of the Attorney General, Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security, Office of the Solicitor General, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice - Civil Division to the Court of Restoration of Appropriations (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 01/30/2019)

2019-01-31

40

NOTICE by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York re 39 Notice(Other), in Response to Proposed Deadlines (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 01/31/2019)

2019-02-01

ORDER re: Defendants' 39 Requests to Extend Production Deadlines: The Court GRANTS the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's ("DHS") request to extend its production deadline until April 4, 2019 to account for the 35-day lapse in appropriations for DHS. Additionally, DHS is DIRECTED to submit an explanation, by no later than February 8, 2019, for why it did not produce documents in November or December 2018. ( See Pls. Jan. 31, 2019 Resp. (Dkt. 40 ) para. 3.) The court DENIES the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Information Policy's ("OIP") request for a June 10, 2019 production deadline. Instead, OIP is DIRECTED to complete production of all outstanding records by no later than April 19, 2019, and to produce records on a rolling monthly basis. Furthermore, the parties are DIRECTED to file any dispositive motions by no later than May 20, 2019; responses must be filed by no later than June 3, 2019; and replies, if any, must be filed by no later than June 10, 2019. The parties need not request a pre-motion conference before filing a dispositive motion, notwithstanding the undersigned's Individual Rule III(A)(2). Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 2/1/2019. (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 02/01/2019)

NOTICE OF FILING OF OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT of Proceedings held on November 1, 2018, before Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis. Court Reporter/Transcriber Georgette K. Betts, Telephone number 718-804-2777. Email address: georgette_betts@nyed.uscourts.gov. Transcript may be viewed at the court public terminal or purchased through the Court Reporter/Transcriber before the deadline for Release of Transcript Restriction. After that date it may be obtained through PACER.File redaction request using event "Redaction Request - Transcript" located under "Other Filings - Other Documents". Redaction Request due 4/10/2019. Redacted Transcript Deadline set for 4/22/2019. Release of Transcript Restriction set for 6/18/2019. (Betts, Georgette) (Entered: 03/20/2019)

ORDER: Defendants are DIRECTED to respond to Plaintiffs' 46 Motion to Produce a Vaughn Index by no later than April 16, 2019. Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 4/9/2019. (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 04/09/2019)

2019-04-16

49

Joint MOTION for Extension of Time to File Dispositive Motions by Office of Legal Counsel, Office of the Attorney General, Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security, Office of the Solicitor General, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice - Civil Division. (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 04/16/2019)

2019-04-17

50

ORDER re withdrawal of 46 Motion to Produce, and 49 Motion for Extension of Time to File Dispositive Motions. Application granted. Defendants' deadline to file motion for summary judgment and Vaughn indices: June 20, 2019; Plaintiffs' deadline to file oppositions to Defendants' motion for summary judgment and to cross-move for summary judgment, if applicable: July 11,2019; Defendants' deadline to file reply in support of their motion for summary judgment and opposition to Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment, if applicable: August 1, 2019; Plaintiffs' deadline to file reply in support of their motion for summary judgment, if applicable: August 15, 2019. So Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 4/16/2019. (Lee, Tiffeny) (Entered: 04/17/2019)

2019-04-18

51

MOTION for Extension of Time to File Serve OIP's Final Release by Office of the Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice. (Westmoreland, Rachael) (Entered: 04/18/2019)

2019-05-16

52

MOTION to Withdraw as Attorney by Make the Road Connecticut, Make the Road New York. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order) (Rosenthal, Joshua) (Entered: 05/16/2019)

ORDER: The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Information Policy's ("OIP") 51 request for a one-week extension of time to "produce all outstanding records" is GRANTED nunc pro tunc . Accordingly, the deadline for OIP to produce all outstanding records was April 26, 2019. Ordered by Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis on 5/22/2019. (Haddad, Andrew) (Entered: 05/22/2019)